About Jessica and This Site
Jessica Ruth Kramer Friedlander (1937-2025) devoted her life to music and teaching over a span of nearly 60 years, starting with public school music education and evolving to early childhood education, and then on to being a docent/interpreter for children at a history museum and at a botanical garden (during her retirement). She was also a performing musician for about twenty years on piano and harpsichord.
Her life was centered around her ever-so-happy 62-year marriage to "her Michael", extended to Rachel and David, then to son-in-law Neil and daughter-in-law Sheryl (respectively), and to grandsons Jonathan, Noah, and Rafael.
In addition, she enriched her life by staying in touch with family (starting decades before the Internet) as well as researching and reaching out to discover new family (alive and not). She was a lifelong learner (flowers, computers, genealogy, and history), something she inculcated in all of us.
This website was released on March 2, 2026, exactly one year after her passing. It was designed, coded, and written by her son David. This site is dedicated to her grandsons, Noah, Rafael, and Jonathan to help them and their future families learn more about Grandma Jessica's life and background.
I want to thank my wife Sheryl and my sister Rachel for being sounding boards and helpful editors, as they offered suggestions and shared my excitement about the latest document discovery along with way.
It has been a fascinating journey for me to deepen my knowledge of what I knew about her life, and I hope that you, the reader, will similarly enjoy delving into it all.
David Friedlander
Kensington, Maryland, USA
2 March 2026.